The Philosopher's Tears
by PiecesOfEight
Summary: Roy and Ed investigate a ring of robberies, only to find the Moonlight Bandits responsible. RoyxRiza, FMACrescent Moon crossfic.
1. The Stolen Files

**Disclaimer: I do not own any FMA or Crescent Moon O/Cs.**

Sitting in his office, he filed through the papers that had been piling onto his desk for weeks. He went through them all in a matter of hours. _Not one from Fullmetal… interesting._ _Has he really been slacking of for this long?_ He stopped as he heard a soft knock on his door. He looked up at the woman standing in his doorway. He took in her blond bangs falling carelessly over her eye, her hair pulled up tightly. He saw the rapt attention in her eyes, saw the sad lines of loneliness under the black bags caused by lack of sleep. He hadn't seen her in a while, he'd been away. He wondered if she'd lost sleep over worry for him…?

"Brigadier General Mustang, Alphonse Elric is here to see you." His face fell slightly. She saw his eyes, cast downward, the glitter of happiness gone. His onyx eyes had the hollow look that she had seen in the eyes of the older Elric after they had found out Cornello's Stone was fake. _That happened so long ago… why do I remember that now?_ That was the last time she'd seen such extreme disappointment. Devastating disappointment. _Did he think I was coming to see him? That would be inappropriate…_

He looked up at her, drinking in her beautiful figure. _This is why I'm getting miniskirts put in the uniforms…_ he thought to himself. He continued to take in her little nose, sharp eyes and soft lips. He absently formed the words "Send him in." He hadn't registered giving the order, but sure enough, she was gone. After he uniform had whipped out sight, he found the words he'd been searching for. "I missed you, Riza…"

Alphonse was in the office a mere five minutes, as he asked if his brother could meet with the colonel that day. Without thinking, Roy made an appointment. His entire mind was on Riza. How she lit up the room when she smiled. Her smile, so pure, but so rare. The shadow of her shape on the carpet, as she stood framed in the doorway, light flooding from behind her. He was entrapped in her gaze, her smell.

"Sir…" She was back. He couldn't mask his happiness. "Sir, are you alright? You've been gone for so long…" She wasn't thinking anymore. Well, a little bit. She walked right up to his desk, not waiting to be invited in. He was so taken aback from her straightforwardness, she could see.

He stammered, as surprised by her being upfront as she was. He said the words he'd said before, with a little more feeling. "I'm alright, but… I missed you, Riza." He walked out to the front of the desk and stood beside her, looking straight into her eyes. She was startled, but she reached for his hand. He leaned in and whispered in her ear. Sweet nothingness, and swiftly brought his lips to hers.

He felt her recoil, but slowly return the kiss. She was leaning up against the desk, his back to the closed door. At the sound of a soft knock on the door, he broke off, pulling her into a strong embrace. He moved back into his chair, and dismissed her. She opened the door, and as she left she revealed a young man, about 14 years of age (or so he looked, being short.) He walked in without invitation, his blonde bangs swinging into his eyes as he did. Tenderly, quietly, closing the door behind him, he stormed up to the desk and leaned over so his eyes stared directly into the Roy's. He said, in a harsh whisper, "Mustang, where the hell have you been?" His eyes flashed with black before narrowing into tiny slits.

"Wow, I'm back one day and you're already being short with me. What do you want?" Roy's smirk turned into a grimace. _What's wrong with him?_

"Who you calling so short you could squish with a postage stamp?!" He snarled, still in that whisper. His tone was hard, but sharp.

"Why don't you just tell me what's going on then?" Roy was getting impatient. _Why in the world is he whispering? It would have been better if he'd just come in and yelled._ "Before I die of boredom?" His voice settled into a low drawl.

"You don't know?" The blonde boy looked surprised. "I filed a report a week ago…" He looked over to the desk, at the stack of papers. Then he saw the card on the table. He sauntered back to the door, stopping only to say one more word. "Psiren."

Roy stood up and yelled down the hallway at the retreating boy's back. "Fullmetal! Ed! What's going on?!"

He yelled back, not turning to look. "Robbery ring, stealing valuable jewels known as the Teardrops of the Moon." Ed turned a corner and had disappeared into the throng of people.

Roy retreated sullenly back to his office, slinking through the halls.

XxXxX

Mahiru Shiarishi tried to see through the whipping winds around her. She couldn't see very far that night. The fog had surrounded her, thick and chokingly, earlier when she'd left Moonshine with her friends. The rushing of the air around her was blocking her ears, cutting into her skin. She ought to be used to it by now, but there was always that initial shock. She was so disoriented she barely heard Mitsuru's call they were landing and gave a start at the sudden plunge.

"Next time don't squirm so much," Mitsuru advised her after neatly setting her down, cracking his neck. He looked at the expression on her face, an expression of reproach he'd seen so many times. "You're gonna make me drop you." He looked behind her at the approaching boy. Mahiru turned, facing the boy as well, watching as he shook his brown hair out of his shining eyes. He looked rather shaken.

"Akira, what happened? Where are Nozomu and Misoka?" She sounded worried. Akira looked tired, like he'd been running forever. "Where are we?"

"I think we skipped over the lunar dimension. You shouldn't be sensing Teardrops here Mahiru. The people here, they're strange." Akira shuddered. "Nozomu and Misoka should be here soon." He sat down on a rock, breathing in the air deeply. The fog wasn't as think now. The air around them began to clear, but the night was dark. There were no lights. He looked around for the two missing from their party, and then looked down at the ground. Mitsuru was standing at the edge of a hill, looking out upon a nearby city. Mahiru stood a while longer, but eventually gave in and sat next to Akira.

She heard a cry from above. "Mahiru!" Mr. Bat swooped down and fluttered in front of her. He sounded distressed. "Nozomu and Misoka need you in the city! Come quickly!!" He took off, leaving the three companions to chase after him. Mahiru was overwhelmed with thoughts. _I hope they're not hurt…_

XxXxX

Roy faced his two visitors from the other side of his desk. "So, you're involved with the Teardrops of the Moon, eh?"


	2. The Crying Moon

**Disclaimer: I do not own any FMA or Crescent Moon O/Cs.**

Mr. Bat soared above the trees, occasionally looking back at the group of three to make sure they were with him. He was following orders, using the bare light of the moon, mingled with the lights of the city to guide him. He heard the quiet panting as the three tired, but kept going. Nozomu had told him it was urgent that they reach them. He flapped his wings, feeling fatigue take over his muscles, but he kept flying. The moonbeams shone dappled lights on the ground as they passed through the trees. The moon was truly beautiful tonight, and he felt remorse at the knowledge that he would have to go inside soon.

When they reached the outskirts of the city, Mahiru heard a soft squeak as Mr. Bat flew down to the ground. She could she, just ahead of them, two figures approaching through the dust kicked up from the ground by the cool wind. She inhaled and gagged on the powder, coughing uncontrollably. Akira came over to her to make sure she was all right as she watched the approaching figures. She could see their outlines better now, one rather short but lean, and one taller and bulkier. She coughed again, finding it harder and harder to breathe as the wind picked up. She fell to her knees, and put her hands to her mouth. Before she knew it, the smaller of the two had run up to her and tried to help, but she found herself slipping unconscious.

Ed walked alongside Al, in pursuit of the giant beast that had escaped from them earlier. They had reached the edge of the city, wind blowing dust in their faces, when they saw three people, two boys and a girl, entering Central. The girl was coughing on the dust. _She's obviously never been here before…_ He thought. He kept his eyes on the ground. He ran towards the three travelers, wanting to help them in return for any information. He ran up to the girl. "Are you alright?" He asked carefully. She looked feebly up at him, and fell over, blacking out. He looked at the two boys. One of them looked concerned about the girl, one merely looked uninterested in being there altogether. "We should get her somewhere safe." He started, eyes darting into the many alleys.

Akira walked alongside the stranger, but Mitsuru kept his distance. Ed tried to strike up a casual conversation, but could feel the tension, the distrust pulsing from 'The Quiet One.' He looked at the one walking beside him. "I'm Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist. It's nice to meet you…"

"Akira Yamabuki." Akira was surprised at the words coming out of his mouth. He didn't recognize the language, or any of the words, the boy called Edward was speaking, but he understood him. It was strange. He thought it might be English, but he didn't speak English. _It must be something to do with this dimension. _"And that's Mitsuru Suou. Where are we?"

Ed stared at Akira. He didn't recognize the language he was speaking, but he understood him. _He doesn't know where he is… could he have come through the gate?_ "This is Central. Where are you from?" He looked over at the Quiet One. _Mitsuru Suou… he should be watched carefully while he's here. These two remind me of the other foreign kids back at Headquarters._

Mitsuru spoke for the first time. "We're from Japan." He stared at the puzzled look on the stranger's face. _We're not really from Japan, but you don't need to know that._ He was seething. He hated meeting new people, and he hated being asked questions. He just wanted them to leave him alone.

The party walked along in silence until they reached the Headquarters. Edward led them up through the magnificent door and hallway, to a prepared room for them to wait in. There was a separate room where he knew the girl wouldn't be disturbed, a spare bedroom. He opened the door so Al could lay her on the bed, then retreated, closing the door behind him. He went and sat with the two boys, waiting for the colonel to finish interrogating the other two. "Who was the girl you were with?"

"Mahiru Shiraishi. She'll be okay won't she?"

"Yeah, she just breathed in some dust. She'll be fine." Akira looked relieved. Ed couldn't help but stare at the many things protruding from the boy's face. His brown hair and pale skin contrasted against the silver things that were piercing his skin. He imagined how much it would hurt. Mitsuru seemed uninterested in whether or not Mahiru would be okay.

Mitsuru glared out the window for a while before turning his gaze back to the short blond boy seated in front of him. "Metal arm and leg…" He wondered aloud to nobody in particular.

Catching this brief statement, Ed turned to the boy and let out a pained chuckle. "That's an old story I'm afraid…"

XxXxX

"What do you want with us?" Roy watched as one of the boys, the short one with long dark hair and glasses, asked him this question rather more forcefully than he had anticipated. "Honestly, why are we here? How could we help you?" His hands clenched into fists and the other boy leaned over, whispering something in the boy's ear. The shorter one relaxed, and this sudden change in mood made Mustang tense up. _There's something about these two…_

"How could you help me?" Roy felt his teeth beginning to clench, his muscles seizing as he went from laid-back to alert in the space of about five seconds. The boys seemed to sense this, as the short one tensed a bit, and the tall one recoiled. Sighing, Mustang put a hand to his forehead. "I've already explained this. You can tell me what I want to know."

The taller one, with the blond hair and the blue eyes, leaned forwards in his chair. "I'm sorry sir, but we're confused. Why do you think we know anything about these Teardrops of the Moon? We have no idea where we are, who you are, or what you're talking about. We only came towards this big, official-looking building because we had hoped you could help us find a place to stay for the night." Roy's instincts told him the boy was lying, but something about his tone suggested sincerity beyond question, and innocence. _Or maybe you're going soft._ The boy looked absolutely puzzled. "If you could help us gather our bearings, maybe we could do something for you."

Roy looked down at the boys. They did look puzzled. He glanced out the window at the full moon, still thinking about the strange creatures he had sworn he'd saw. A were-wolf, a vampire, a kitsune, beasts all of them. And they had simply disappeared. It seemed that Ed had chased after the were-wolf, but he had returned minutes ago with no sign of a beast. All that Roy had found where these creatures were spotted, outside HQ, were these two strange looking boys. "My name is Colonel Roy Mustang. You happen to have been taken in by the military, and you are lucky, we have a few rooms to spare. If you would be so kind as to tell me your names everything could be arranged."

The short one spoke first. "My name is Misoka Asagi, and my friend here," he gestured to the tall one, "is Nozomu Moegi." Misoka looked reproachful. "Are our names all you really need to know?" He looked rather inquisitive, but guarded. His eyes shone with distrust behind his wide glasses, but Nozomu look cooperative.

When the Colonel spoke again, he addressed Nozomu. "Your names will suffice, for now. Edward!" He called out to the door, and a short blond with a red coat appeared at the door instantaneously. "Take these two to a spare room. And make sure they don't leave without checking with me first." He looked sternly at the two foreigners. "This city is… dangerous, to say the least. Don't go wandering around again. You could find yourselves in deeper trouble than you've ever imagined."

Nozomu and Misoka joined the boy at the door, and left, with one last glance back at the Colonel.

XxXxX

Mahiru woke in a strange room, on a cold bed. She blinked her eyes into focus, staring out a black window. It was still night, the crickets clearly cutting through the stillness with their chirping. She propped herself up on her elbows, looking around the barren room. She slowly rose to her feet, and with a soft cough, managed her way across the room to the door. She found herself in a hallway, with many doors. Every door looked the same save for the one at the very end of the hall. It was a double door. From where she could she could hear the snoring and fidgeting of her 'neighbours' as they slept.

As she approached the double door, she could hear faint noises of conversation. She could just recognize some of the voices, but two were foreign. She tentatively opened the door, and was immediately pulled into a crushing hug. "Mahiru!!!!" Akira screamed her name as he hugged her. She saw, behind a wall of Akira's short brown locks, Nozomu and Misoka come to their feet to greet her, smiling. Mitsuru glanced at her from the window, then resumed his pose of staring into the blank night.

Mahiru let a small frown of hurt and disappointment creep onto her face. As Nozomu hugged her—rather more gently than Akira—Misoka bowed his head and murmured "Princess." The blond boy in the corner looked puzzled at the way Misoka greeted her. She smiled at him.

"Hi, I'm Mahiru. Did you bring us here?" The boy nodded. "Thank you very much."

"I'm Edward Elric, The Fullmetal Alchemist. You were lost with these boys right? You're no doubt wondering where you are." Mahiru nodded, but Edward looked less than slightly interested. He had obviously explained all this to Nozomu, Misoka, Mitsuru and Akira. "This is Central City, the headquarters of the military, more precisely." He turned to the others. "It's getting late, we should all probably sleep. My brother Alphonse—" He gestured at the armour, "And I, will show you to rooms where you can stay. You shouldn't leave here alone, it's dangerous, but I can meet you all back here in the morning."

The group followed the brothers throughout the twisting hallways of identical doors, marking the path in their minds. When Ed had dropped off the last of the visitors, Mitsuru, to his room, he retired to his own temporary quarters. He lay on his bed, looking up at the moon, and thinking about Mahiru, _Princess, they call her_, he thought he saw the face of the full moon. And it was crying.


End file.
